The historic club Wigan Warriors joined with their Challenge Cup Final victory
Wigan Warriors are now officially part of an illustrious club of just six teams in the history of the sport after their Challenge Cup triumph on Saturday.
At present, English clubs can win four major trophies: the World Club Challenge, the Super League title, the League Leader’s Shield and, of course, the Challenge Cup.
But ever since the World Club Challenge became a regular fixture in the late-1980s, there have been the opportunity to hold all four major titles at the same time: the First Division title, the Premiership and the Challenge Cup being the ‘big three’ before the summer era.
And with Wigan’s win against Warrington, their squad became only the third in the modern era – and sixth in history – to hold all four trophies at the same time owing to their League Leader’s Shield and Super League double at the end of last year, their World Club Challenge win at the start of this season and the prospect of adding the cup to that haul. Here’s the other teams to have done it.
Wigan Warriors 1987-88
The feat was first achieved by Wigan in the late-1980s. They won the Championship and the Premiership in the 1986-87 season, before going on to win the World Club Challenge for the first time in October of 1987. They would then win the 1988 Challenge Cup final before relinquishing the Championship and Premiership trophies to Widnes.
However, for a handful of weeks, Wigan did hold all four trophies – something they would replicate twice more in the coming years.
Wigan Warriors 1991-92
By the early-1990s, Wigan were well in the midst of their dominance of the Challenge Cup. 1991-92 was to be the year they won their first domestic treble of the Premiership, Championship and cup – and at the start of that season, way back in October 1991, they had won the World Club Challenge. It meant they once again owned the full set.
Wigan Warriors 1993-94
And just two years later, the Warriors were at it again. Once more, they won the domestic treble in the 1993-94 season – and at the end of that campaign, they travelled Down Under to face Brisbane in the World Club Challenge.
In what is arguably the most famous win in Wigan history, they triumphed in Brisbane to once again become world champions: and once again hold all four trophies.
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Bradford Bulls 2003-04
As the modern era began, the domestic treble became the Grand Final, the League Leader’s Shield and the Challenge Cup. The first club to win it? Bradford’s all-conquering side of 2003, as they swept the board trophy-wise.
Then, just a few months later, they underlined their position as the world’s best club side with triumph in the 2004 World Club Challenge to become the first club other than Wigan to complete the set.
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St Helens 2006-07
Just a few years later, St Helens followed suit with a domestic treble under Daniel Anderson.
Then at the start of the 2007 campaign, they held all four trophies for the first time in their history with an unforgettable victory over Brisbane Broncos in the World Club Challenge.
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